Sending electronic newsletters may seem like “old school” to some, but considering that 90% of adults use e-mail, these tools should be a part of your marketing plan.  Sending newsletters to your customers can be a great way to stay connected, establish yourself as a leader in your field and inform customers of the latest happenings at your business.  And the best part of e-mail campaigns?  Your customers have chosen to receive the communication.  You now have a targeted and captive audience...

During this tough time we wanted to have a little fun with a contest.  So we want to see you with all the craziness of having to work from home or whatever your situation is.   Here is how you can win $50 in free groceries!  1. Post a picture of yourself working from home or your crazy environment in the comments of this Facebook post, include a short writeup about your work struggles during this time.  2. Promote your comment and have your friends like your photo comment.  3. The top 5...

Let’s face it.  We are living in an unfamiliar, uncertain world these days.  It can leave a small business owner feeling both mentally and financially stressed.  We feel it too.  We are small business owners who are riding out this health crisis and waiting for the world to get back to normal.  There is a lot of talk about how small businesses will survive, and with this in mind, we’ve written about how we are managing and providing advice on how you can manage these stressful times too. ...

I'm sure you are all feeling in both your personal and professional lives, the big changes and concern that are arising from the COVID-19 situation. We are committed to helping all of our clients, partners and employees during this time. We have taken multiple precautions to ensure there is no interruption of service and that we can continue to meet your needs during this time. We have been in touch with all of our integrated partners and confirmed that they too have taken precautions to...

One thing that our world has lost is the art of negotiation. You hear about it all the time in “big business” when there is a deal on the table. Two groups will get together and haggle through the details. It may be for a service, product or player contract but there is a back and forth. Both parties know that they want to work with each other and want to strive to get the best deal for both parties. Enter fixed pricing. With the pop up of boxed stores and set pricing most of us are...

Remember the days of opening your search engine only to be faced with an ad popping up on your screen for something you have no interest in buying?  We call it “Interruptive Advertising” and it’s a marketing tactic that is slowly disappearing. Today’s marketing is all about personalization.  Consumers want brands to understand their specific needs.  They want personalization and the feeling that the business is talking directly to them.  And all of this can be accomplished with social media...

SEO and Google Ads…If the terms leave you dazed and confused, read on, as we try to solve the mystery of which one to use for your business.  Let’s start by defining the terms… A web-site is not very useful if your current, or potential customers cannot find it.  Enter SEO.  SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, which is the process of ensuring your web-site ranks high in search results when users are searching for specific words.  Google Ads are paid advertisements that appear on...

What gets you up in the morning? What makes you excited? What project brings a smile across your face when you’re finished? What is the heartbeat that moves you forward? As a business owner it is so easy to get overly busy with business. There are so many things to do every day. Emails to answer, articles to read, invoices to send, clients to serve, meetings to plan and tons of other to-dos. How do you get inspired when there is just so much to do?

We thought this valentines day we would inspire you with some Instagram posts that we love and inspire us. We don't know most of these artists, but hopefully you can find a little inspiration for your next project.   These posts are in no particular order :)

“If you are failing to plan, then you are planning to fail.”  Benjamin Franklin As a business owner, you know the importance of having an overall business plan and a marketing plan.  But did you also know that you should have a social media plan?  If having engaging social media channels is part of your marketing mix, or if you are new to the social media game, below are tips and advice to help you get started and moving in the right direction.